WHO Committee Recommends Stricter Mercury Exposure Standards; Nonprofit group urges FDA to adopt more protective warnings

6/26/03 12:06:00 PM

To: National Desk

Contact: Michael Bender of MPP & Ban Hg-WG, 802-223-9000 or 802-249-8543(c)

ROME, June 26 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Released today, an expert committee of the World Health Organization recommended a new human exposure standard for methylmercury that is nearly twice as stringent as the existing world health exposure standard. The Mercury Policy Project, a global mercury nonprofit group, applauded the recommendation and urged the US FDA-and national health agencies around the world-to revise their standards, even before the WHO finalizes the new recommendations.

"The new WHO recommendations are more reflective of the latest science on methlymercury exposure risks. While fish is a good source of protein, we urge caution when consuming predatory fish with higher mercury levels," said Michael Bender, of the Mercury Policy Project and representative of the Ban Mercury Working Group, a coalition of 28 groups around the world working on mercury issues.

The Joint FAO/WHO Expert Committee on Food Additives recommended that the Provisional Tolerable Weekly Intake (PTWI) for methylmercury be cut in half. Meanwhile, the FDA's allowable daily intake, the amount of methylmercury that can be consumed daily over the lifespan without producing appreciable harm, is weaker by a factor of 2 (around 0.2 ug/kd/day for WHO versus 0.4 ug/kg/day for FDA.)

"While WHO appears to be moving in the right direction, FDA continues to lag behind with an outdated and indefensible standard, allowing millions of pregnant moms and kids to unnecessarily be exposed to methylmercury at unsafe levels," said Bender. "We urge FDA to stop protecting the fishing industry and to start protecting sensitive populations."

Methylmercury-the organic form mercury assumes in fish-is a potent neurotoxin that poses the greatest risk to the developing fetus, infants, and young children. According to the Centers for Disease Control, one in 12 women of childbearing age in the U.S. has unsafe mercury levels, translating to over 300,000 babies born at risk.

Most mercury pollution comes from the burning of fossil fuels in the coal-fired power plants, waste disposal, industrial processes and mining. Mercury levels in the environment have increased 3-5 fold in the past century. Since 1996, fish has surpassed beef and poultry as the most common source of protein in the world. In February 2003, the UN Governing Council found that there were sufficient adverse impacts from global mercury pollution to warrant international action.

More information: JECFA meeting summary:

ftp://ftp.fao.org/es/esn/jecfa/jecfa61sc.pdf

http://www.mercurypolicy.org/new/documents/2WHOcommentsFINAL06030 3.pdf

Linda Greer, Natural Resources Defense Council, 202-289-6868

http://www.usnewswire.com/

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